Lawn equipment theft cuts down businesses

Thieves with an appetite for expensive lawn equipment have preyed on citizens, schools, businesses and even city government.

By Austin L. MillerStaff writer

Scot Corley has been cutting lawns for 17 years.

Five years ago, his lawn equipment, worth roughly $10,000, was stolen from an area he had cleared in Lake Weir.

Not long after the theft, Corley, owner of Lawns of Distinction, was fortunate enough to retrieve his equipment when deputies recovered it during their investigation.

"I got lucky on that one," he said.

But his luck didn't hold.

Sometime between July 15 and July 19, thieves stole his custom-made trailer and between $40,000 and $50,000 worth of lawn equipment.

None of the items have been recovered.

"I don't want to lose my business. I worked too hard to get where I am," said the 50-year-old Corley.

Determined not to lose his clients, who he said so far have been very understanding, Corley borrowed equipment from friends so he could keep up with his work.

"I did not owe any money on the lawn equipment," he said. "And how do you replace my custom-built trailer?"

Corley is not alone, police say.

Thieves with an appetite for expensive lawn equipment have preyed on citizens, schools, businesses and even city government.

Three days ago, a homeowner contacted Ocala police to report that someone had stolen his red 1976 Snapper riding mower worth $150.

He said that a month earlier, someone had cut the wires to the battery and had stolen a metal pan that covered the engine area.

Earlier this month, about $5,500 in equipment was stolen from two Ocala schools located about four miles apart.

About $5,000 in lawn equipment was taken from Forest High School, and Greenway Elementary School reported a missing utility trailer worth $500.

On Feb. 18, about $35,000 worth of lawn equipment stored inside a trailer at the city of Ocala yard at 2000 N.E. 30th Ave. was stolen.

An employee told an officer he left the trailer with the goods inside the fenced-in compound. But when he arrived the next morning, the lock to the gate had been cut and the trailer was missing.

Sheriff's Detective Todd Tucker, who is investigating Corley's case, said the thieves stealing the lawn equipment "will take anything."

He said such equipment is often swapped or sold for drugs, sold for "whatever they can get" or is sold to pawn shops.

While Dunnellon and Belleview Police Department officials say they have not experienced such a trend, Ocala police and the Marion County Sheriff's Office are noticing a marked uptick.

Last year, OPD estimated that 99 pieces of lawn equipment, valued at just under $49,000, were stolen in their jurisdiction.

During the same time period, the Sheriff's Office investigated 28 such thefts.

This year, through July 21, both agencies are on pace to surpass the previous year's totals. Sheriff's officials have recorded 42 thefts, with close to $138,000 worth of equipment stolen, while Ocala police have logged approximately 116 thefts, worth nearly $82,000.

"It's easy access," said Sgt. Sandra Fernland, a member of the Ocala Police Department's Intelligence Unit. "A lawn company is out doing a job and while they're working, someone passes by and snatches a piece of equipment."

Fernland said the thefts are not centered in one area, but are throughout the city.

Authorities say the thieves usually strike late at night or early in the morning.

Some thefts have occurred in the daytime when people are at work and leave equipment unsecured in the yard, a shed or an open building.

In some instances, the suspect or suspects stole a truck, but left behind a trailer. In others, they bypass a vehicle and steal a trailer, then hit different locations and steal equipment and load the trailer.

In Corley's case, although his stolen custom-made trailer was hooked to a 2001 Dodge pickup, the truck was left behind.

Both Fernland and Tucker said other counties have contacted them about similar thefts.

Officials recommend that owners not leave equipment in remote areas, that they park close to work sites, record serial numbers for all their equipment and engrave their names on their equipment so it can be easily identified.

Corley says those are good suggestions, but may not help.

"If someone wants it bad enough," he said, "they'll take it."

Contact Austin L. Miller at 867-4118 or austin.miller@starbanner.com.

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.